MR-Imaging of Articular Cartilage

Abstract

Hyaline cartilage is vital in maintaining normal joint function the recent development of treatment methods for articular cartilage abnormalities and new insights into the pathophysiology of arthritic disorders have created a need for better ways of noninvasively evaluating diarthrodial joint structures, particularly articular cartilage. Special attenuation in this regard has focused on MR imaging because of its noninvasiveness, multiplanar capability, and excellent soft tissue discrimination. The MR nnagmg assessment of articular cartilage allows • detection of cartilage defects with resonable accuracy especially in cases of higher-grade defects. This information has clinical usefulness for articular cartilage assessment, because it can not only influence the treatment decisions but also permit the determination of prognosis. Improvements in MR imaging techniques will make possible

earlier detection of cartilage defects, which, we hope, will allow interventions that can stop or reverse the process of cartilage degeneration before morphologic defects occur. Numerous MR imaging techniques are capable of delineating articular cartilage, however, determining the most appropiate technique depends on the clinical or research question to be answered and inherent trade-offs in availability, imaging time, spatial resolution, anatomic coverage' and sensetivity to early matrix damage always exists.